Cavs Kick Canes Out Of Stadium

After setting an NCAA record with five wins by two or fewer points, Virginia dispensed with the hold-your-breath stuff on Saturday night, spoiling Miami's last game at the Orange Bowl with a 48-0 victory that wasn't in doubt after the game's first 25 minutes.

The convincing win did more than hand the Hurricanes their worst home loss in 63 years as former Miami greats turned out to bid the 70-year-old Orange Bowl goodbye. It also ensured that the Cavaliers' Nov. 24 game at Scott Stadium against in-state rival Virginia Tech will be for the Coastal Division title and a spot in the ACC championship game on Dec. 1 in Jacksonville.

The Cavaliers (9-2, 6-1 ACC), who came into the game ranked No. 23 by the Associated Press and 19th in the BCS, led 14-0 after the first quarter and 31-0 at halftime, their highest-scoring first half since 2004 and their second-highest point total of the season. The scoring spurt - aided by a blocked punt and an interception - was especially eye-catching against Miami (5-5, 2-4), which had only allowed seven points in the first half in six home games this season.

The Hurricanes' previous worst showing at home was a 70-14 shellacking at the hands of Texas A&M in 1944.

U.Va. even scored a touchdown in the third quarter, something it hadn't done since Oct. 19, 2006, when Mikell Simpson's 2-yard run made it a 38-0 lead with 10:48 to go in the third.

Virginia took its opening drive 96 yards in seven plays to go up 7-0 on Jameel Sewell's 29-yard touchdown pass to Maurice Covington, then took a 14-0 lead late in the first quarter after Josh Zidenberg's blocked punt gave the Cavs the ball on the Miami 2.

In the second quarter, Byron Glaspy's 29-yard interception return led to Chris Gould's 33-yard field goal. Then, after Miami couldn't move the ball from deep in its own territory, U.Va. took over at the Hurricanes' 38 - its fifth straight possession inside Miami territory. Four players later, Sewell's 1-yard sneak made it 24-0 with 10 minutes to go in the second period.

Sewell finished the game 20-of-25 for a career-high 288 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

Simpson tacked on a 1-yard TD before halftime for U.Va., which last won four games on the road in 1999.

Gould added a 41-yard field goal with 5:32 to play, and Chris Cook returned a fumble recovery 44 yards for a TD with 2:26 left to at last cap the scoring.

The pre-game atmosphere was festive, as children posed for parents' pictures and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, wrestler-turned-actor and former Miami defensive lineman, introduced the Hurricanes' seniors. Flash bulbs popped through the smoke from fireworks and the crowd of 62,106 loudly cheered the Hurricanes as they ran onto the field.

But those cheers were silenced well before halftime, when former Hurricane players in attendance, including Andre Johnson and Gino Torretta, were recognized, then left the field as the Miami band played "We Are The Champions." The crowd made little noise again until Gould missed a 33-yard field goal wide right in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter.

In the first two quarters, Virginia outgained Miami 229 yards to 94 and had 10 first downs to the Hurricanes' five. By the third period, the Cavs had 361 yards of offense to the Hurricanes' 152 and had allowed just seven first downs while picking up 18.

Kyle Wright, back at quarterback after spraining his knee and ankle against Florida State on Oct. 10, was ineffective. Through three quarters, he'd completed seven of 18 passes for 75 yards and thrown three interceptions while being sacked twice.

ONLINE EXTRA

Get frequent updates on the Cavaliers from beat writer Melinda Waldrop at dailypress.com/hoosnews.